1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of personal items securing and locking devices. More specifically the present invention relates to an item lock apparatus for releasibly anchoring items to beach sand while the owner is swimming, picnicking or is otherwise occupied. The apparatus includes an auger having an upright auger shaft and a ramped auger screw flange at the shaft lower end for screwing into beach sand, and a lug structure preferably in the form of a lug box fixedly secured to the shaft upper end. A locking post extends upwardly from the lug structure, preferably in the form of a free spinning rod having a retaining flange at the rod lower end inside the lug box and has a lock engaging structure in the form of a post diametric bore through which a padlock bolt can pass. A shield disk having a central disk port is fitted over the auger shaft upper end so that the shield disk is rotatably mounted immediately below and is retained from above by the lug structure, the shield disk preferably having a disk stabilizing tube encompassing the disk port and the auger shaft and secured to the shield disk to extend downwardly from the shield disk, so that the shield disk and disk mounting tube spin freely around the auger shaft, and obstruct access to the auger shaft to prevent others from gripping and rotating the auger shaft, a shield dome having a dome apex port for fitting over the lug structure and around the locking post to a level below the post diametric bore to spin freely about the auger shaft and so that a padlock bolt can be fitted through the post diametric bore and locked above the shield dome so that the shield dome encloses and prevents unauthorized access to the lug structure, so that personal items can be lockingly secured to the padlock and unauthorized persons have access only to the free spinning post, dome and shield disk and thus cannot engage and rotate the auger shaft to remove the apparatus and steal the engaged items. It is contemplated that the apparatus be used to anchor a cooler box or other container to the beach sand to provide a secure dry compartment for items. A lug engaging lever structure is provided preferably in the form of a lug wrench sized and configured to engage the lug structure for rotating the auger shaft to screw the lock apparatus into and out of the beach sand.
2. Description of the Prior Art
People have long brought personal items such as rings, watches and other items to the beach, only to have to remove them before entering the water. Often these items are secured in an automobile, but where beach parking is a long walk from the beach this is not always convenient. Where items are brought to the beach, the only way to secure the items typically would be to hide them such as underneath a beach towel, a strategy fully understood by potential thieves.
It is thus an object of the present invention to provide a beach lock for securing personal items and other possessions to the beach itself.
It is another object of the present invention to provide such a beach lock which is easily and quickly anchored in beach sand and just as quickly and easily removed by the owner of the items to be secured, and yet which is extremely difficult for a thief to dislodge without attracting attention.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide such a beach lock which is light weight and compact so that it can be carried and stored easily.
It is finally an object of the present invention to provide such a beach lock which is sturdy, reliable and inexpensive to manufacture.